Enjoy.
Countdown recap for Wednesday 15 August 2012.
C1: Champion Grant Waters (6 wins, 569 points.) An Apteforumite from Maidstone, Kent. His best holiday was in the Mayan Riviera in Mexico.
C2: Challenger Calum Steel. A student from Sutton, Cambridgeshire. He is currently studying Sports Journalism at the University of Bedfordshire. He plays cricket and football for his local teams, as well as being a football referee and host of a sports show on local radio. He will also be a barman at the university when the term resumes next month.
DC: Susie Dent and Dave Myers.
RR: Rachel Riley.
OT: Other words or solutions.
R01: S B N E U E R T O
R02: N A L D E T P O B
R03: Z T N E I U E T G
R04: N O M L I S H A S
R05: 50, 1, 7, 10, 2, 7. Target: 266.
TTT: LICKOBOE - "These little creatures love a good story"
R06: C O T I L P T E S
R07: R F N G A I U A T
R08: J E R W O S E R P
R09: G W O L A I E V R
R10: 75, 9, 3, 10, 1, 4. Target: 413.
TTT: RASHBELT - ""You wouldn't want to be belted with these", said the prince"
R11: M D T U I O S R E
R12: M A R T O S D I R
R13: G D Q E U I R O M
R14: 50, 25, 5, 6, 10, 4. Target: 587.
R15: T O I L P R O O F (conundrum)
And now a brief interlude before our main feature:
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Enjoy the show.
Round 1: S B N E U E R T O
C1: BURNT (5)
C2: BEERS (5)
DC: RETUNES (7) ENROBES (7)
OT: TENEBROUS (18)
Score: 5–5 (max 18)
Hmmm, an interesting pattern here. Two 5's from the contestants, two 7's from DC, and a 9 left lurking around.
TENEBROUS is an adjective meaning dark, gloomy or obscure.
Round 2: N A L D E T P O B
C1: PLANTED (7)
C2: BOATED (6)
DC: POLENTA (7) NOTABLE (7)
OT: BLOATED (7) NOTEPAD (7) POTABLE (7) TADPOLE (7) TALONED (7) TONEPAD (7)
Score: 12–5 (max 25)
A plethora of 7's are available here, but Calum can only find a 6, although he could've stuck the L in there for BLOATED.
Round 3: Z T N E I U E T G
C1: TINGE (5)
C2: getting
DC: GUNITE (6)
OT: TEEING (6) TENUTI (6)
Score: 17–5 (max 31)
Oh dear, prolonged hesitancy and the inevitable phantom letter give Grant an even bigger advantage.
Round 4: N O M L I S H A S
C1: SHOALS (6)
C2: SMASH (5)
DC: SHALOM (6) SALMONS (7)
Me: MALISONS (8)
Score: 23–5 (max 39)
Grant extends his lead even further thanks to his SHOALS, whereas DC go for a slightly odd foody plural 7, I get a brilliant 8.
A MALISON is an archaic term for a curse.
Round 5: 50, 1, 7, 10, 2, 7. Target: 266.
C1: 266. ((7 - 2) x 50) + 10 + 7 - 1 (10)
C2: 266. ((7 - 2) x 50) + 10 + 7 - 1 (10)
Score: 33–15 (max 49)
Nice and easy numbers to start our threesome today.
Dave talks about his microlight licence and how he had to upgrade it for a Hairy Bikers special in Namibia.
Teatime teaser: LICKOBOE -> BOOKLICE
Round 6: C O T I L P T E S
C1: poltices
C2: CLIPS (5)
DC: TIPTOES (7) POTTIES (7) POTTLES (7)
OT: POLITEST (8)
Score: 33–20 (max 57)
Oooooh, a bit of a gamble there by Grant, but when your opponent only declares 5, surely you must have something a bit safer for either 6 or 7
Round 7: R F N G A I U A T
C1: RAFTING (7)
C2: frating
DC: FIGURANT (8)
Score: 40–20 (max 65)
Oh dear, oh dear, I thought that when Calum said "risky 7", I thought FARTING would be coming out of his mouth (which itself would be weird), but instead it's the illegal frating, which now puts him a score behind.
A very impressive spot by DC may I say, though. Round 8: J E R W O S E R P
C1: POWERS (6)
C2: PROSER (6)
DC: repowers
OT: REPOSE (6) REPROS (6) ROWERS (6) SPEWER (6)
Score: 46–26 (max 71)
Six sixes. RESULT.
Slightly surprised that repowers wasn't in though. Round 9: G W O L A I E V R
C1: GOALIE (6)
C2: GROVEL (6)
DC: LOVAGE (6)
OT: LAWGIVER (8)
Score: 52–32 (max 79)
Yet more 6's in this round, but there is an impressive 8 that is missed by all.
A LAWGIVER, perhaps unsurprisingly, is a person who promulgates a law or a code of laws.
Susie's Origins Of Words talks about the origins of the connection between "porcine" and "porcelain".
Round 10: 75, 9, 3, 10, 1, 4. Target: 413.
C1: 411. ((9 - 3) x 75) - (4 x 10) + 1 (7)
C2: -
RR: 413. ((75 - (10 - 4)) x (9 - 3)) - 1 (10)
Score: 59–32 (max 89)
A bit of a deceptive numbers game here, which completely outfoxes Calum, while Grant manages to get to 2 away.
Teatime teaser: RASHBELT -> HALBERTS
Round 11: M D T U I O S R E
C1: MISROUTED (18)
C2: meteors
Score: 77–32 (max 107)
Grant waltzes in with another 9 to add to his ever-growing collection, while Calum crashes and burns like the meteors that have no 2nd E in them.
Round 12: M A R T O S D I R
C1: ADROIT (6)
C2: DARTS (5)
DC: DIATOMS (7)
Me: MIRADORS (8)
Score: 83–32 (max 115)
Grant wraps up his 7th win thanks to being ADROIT.
DC find DIATOMS for the first time in what seems like forever, while I find the darrenic 8 again. 
Round 13: G D Q E U I R O M
C1: QUID (4)
C2: GUIDER (6)
DC: QUIRE (5) MORGUE (6)
OT: DROGUE (6) GOURDE (6) GRIMED (6) ROGUED (6) ROUGED (6)
Score: 83–38 (max 121)
Oh dear, well, at least, Grant has already won, since he was just scraping for a few QUID there.
A GOURDE is a paper money and monetary unit of Haiti, equal to 100 centimes.
Round 14: 50, 25, 5, 6, 10, 4. Target: 587.
C1: 580.
C2: 585. ((5 + 6) x 50) + 25 + 10 (7)
OT: 587. ((((50 x 6) - 4) x 10) - 25) / 5 (10)
Score: 83–45 (max 131)
Crikey, again it seemed deceptively easy, but that solution is actually the only one in a 99%!!!!
Round 15: T O I L P R O O F
C1 buzzes on 5 seconds to say PROFITEROLE which is incorrect.
C2 does not buzz.
The answer was PORTFOLIO.
Final Score: 83–45 (max 141)
Hmmmm, PROFITEROLE.
Wait, that's an 11 
Oh well, an elderly woman in the audience is left to tell us all the answer.So, Grant has his 7th win of his run. A win tomorrow will more than likely put him in 2nd place in the table, unless he can muster a mega score in the 140's, which as we all know, has only happened the once.
Join me tomorrow, to see if history will be made, or more than likely NOT.
So, till then, bye bye.
Statistics Corner
Grant:
Total score - 83
Raw score - 92
Total % of max - 59
Raw % of max - 65
Total average score per round - 5.5
Raw average score per round - 6.1
Number of maxes - 4
Calum:
Total score - 45
Raw score - 61
Total % of max - 32
Raw % of max - 43
Total average score per round - 3.0
Raw average score per round - 4.1
Number of maxes - 3
Further summaries are at:
http://www.apterous.org/cdb/series.php?series=67
